AMC's Hell on Wheels Renewed for Season 2

AMC has renewed the freshman series Hell on Wheelsfor a second run, our sister site Deadline.com reports. The period drama opened strongly last month, with 4.4 million total viewers, giving AMC its second-highest-rated series premiere behind the zombie phenom The Walking Dead.

Following Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Walking Dead and The Killing, Hell on Wheels represents the fifth out of six AMC original series to live on beyond Season 1, with only Rubicon falling short.

Currently on its holiday break, Hell on Wheels will air its eighth episode on Sunday, Jan. 1 at 10/9c.